
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 11, 1995                   TAG: 9501110069
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A8   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DAVID M. POOLE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                 LENGTH: Medium

SOUTHWEST VA. CALLED A TARGET

Democrats from Southwest Virginia, who have been saying for weeks that their region would be shortchanged by Allen administration budget cuts, held a news conference Tuesday at the Capitol to air their complaints.

The Democratic lawmakers argued that Southwest Virginia will take a disproportionate hit if Gov. George Allen succeeds in cutting $400 million from public education, colleges and other programs.

"Well, Southwest Virginia got the message," said Sen. Jack Reasor of Bluefield. "When it comes to this budget, Southwest Virginians are not essential."

Allen, a Republican, maintained Monday that there was no regional bias in his spending recommendations and that he has devoted considerable resources to bringing economic development to Southwest Virginia.

But Del. Thomas Jackson of Hillsville came armed with statistics that he said proved Southwest Virginia will be treated unfairly.

Jackson said Buchanan County stands to lose $350,000 - or $68 per student - in school funds, compared with "Fairfax and other more populated areas" that will lose about $1 per student.

"You cannot lose $68 per child and provide the quality of education a child needs or deserves," he said.

Reasor said southwestern Virginia would absorb 59 percent of Allen's higher-education reductions.

Reasor and Del. Jim Shuler of Blacksburg were particularly critical of Allen's proposed $7.3 million cut for agricultural extension programs, based at Virginia Tech, and elimination of a global-studies program at Radford University, saving $2 million.

Reasor accused the administration of hypocrisy for criticizing the global-studies program as ``too nontraditional'' while proposing a controversial charter-schools program for public schools.

Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers held a competing news conference in which they praised Allen's spending and tax priorities.

House Minority Leader Vance Wilkins of Amherst said he and other GOP lawmakers from areas west of Richmond have not examined whether Allen's budget proposals unfairly hurt the region.

``There may be instances where that's true, but I'm not willing to concede that it's the case in general,'' Wilkins said.

The Associated Press provided information for this story.

Keywords:
GENERAL ASSEMBLY 1995

by CNB